What Is Tellor (TRB)

What Is Tellor (TRB)

Tellor is a decentralised oracle network built on blockchain technology, primarily on the Ethereum blockchain. It provides real-world data for use in smart contracts and decentralised applications (DApps) on Ethereum.

 

Many blockchains are isolated from external information and real-world data sources which limits their utility and functionality. For example, decentralised finance (DeFi) applications need data feeds for oracles to determine asset values. For blockchain technology to further expand its use cases and into various industries, there is a need for a bridge between on-chain and off-chain data. 

 

Oracles fetch external data and feed it into smart contracts. But this typically is a centralised approach which contradicts the principles of blockchain technology. To ensure the security and resistance to censorship of smart contracts, there is a need for trustless provision of off-chain data.

 

The key aim of Tellor is to be the bridge in enabling blockchain technology to interact with real-world data in a reliable and trustless manner. 

 

Who Created Tellor

Tellor was founded in 2019 by Brenda Loya, Nick Fett, and Michael Zemrose. Brenda is the CEO and co-founder of Tellor and worked as the VP and lead developer of Daxia in blockchain, scalability, and data science. Nick is the CTO and co-founder of Tellor and was the founder of Daxia, a protocol that provides “smart contracts on Ethereum to issue tokens that represent the long and short sides of an asset”. Michael Zemrose is CSO and co-founder of Tellor and worked previously as BD in Daxia.

How Does Tellor Work

Here’s an overview of how Tellor works:

 

Data Request: 

A user or smart contract requests specific real-world data, such as the current temperature, stock prices, or exchange rates. This request is sent to the Tellor network.

 

Mining Competition: 

Miners in the Tellor network compete to fulfil the data request by retrieving the required information from the designated source. Tellor employs a Proof of Work consensus mechanism whereby miners compete to solve a puzzle and validate the transaction. 

 

Data Verification: 

The miner that successfully completes the puzzle must provide the fetched data along with a 500 TRB (Tellor’s native token) stake. This stake serves as an incentive for miners to provide accurate and reliable data and as a guarantee of their trustworthiness.

 

Challenges and Voting: 

After the data is submitted, it enters a dispute period during which other Tellor token holders can challenge the validity of the data. A token holder can pay a dispute fee to submit a challenge. A dispute results in a vote by Tellor token holders to determine whether the data is accurate or not.

 

When challenged, the miner is placed in a locked state while the other TRB holders vote on the validity of the data. If the data is voted to be correct, the dispute fee is paid to the miner. On the other hand, if the data was wrong, the staked amount from the miner is paid to the person who raised the dispute.

 

Data Confirmation: 

Once the data passes the voting process and is confirmed as accurate, it is then stored on the Tellor blockchain and becomes available for smart contracts to utilize.

 

Reward Distribution:

The winning miner and voters receive rewards for their efforts. The miner is rewarded with a portion of the data requester’s fees, which is paid in TRB tokens, while voters receive TRB tokens as well.

 

Tellor’s Use Cases

Some of Tellor’s use cases include:

 

1. Decentralised Finance (DeFi)

To operate efficiently, DeFi applications need up-to-date and accurate information. Tellor’s oracles allow DeFi platforms to access asset values, carry out lending and borrowing operations, and more. 

 

2. Weather Data

Farmers and agricultural businesses can use Tellor’s oracles to access real-time weather data and make informed decisions regarding crop management, irrigation, and disaster preparedness.

 

3. Supply Chain

Tellor can be used to record and verify supply chain data such as the tracking of the movement of goods and maintaining records of inventory management on its blockchain. 

 

4. Insurance 

External data feeds from Tellor can help insurance providers calculate premiums dynamically based on real-world factors, such as weather conditions or market prices.

 

TRB Tokenomics

Tellor Tributes (TRB) is the native token of Tellor. These are some of the key roles that TRB plays in the Tellor network:

 

• Mining Rewards

TRB tokens are distributed to miners on the Tellor network as rewards for providing accurate data to the blockchain.

 

• Staking

To become a miner on the Tellor network, individuals or entities must stake TRB tokens. Staking TRB acts as collateral to discourage malicious actors.

 

• Governance

TRB token holders can propose and vote on changes to the Tellor network. This allows the community to collectively make decisions regarding the development and direction of the network. 

 

Tellor has a total supply of 2,441,539 tokens of which 1,703,442 tokens are in circulation as of September 2023.

 

What Makes Tellor Unique

Tellor distinguishes itself from other decentralised oracle networks from the way it retrieves and validates data.

 

The network uses a Proof of Work (PoW) consensus mechanism to process data. This enhances network security and makes it resistant to attacks, as miners, also known as “reporters”, must compete to provide accurate data by expending computational resources. 

 

In addition, to take part in the validation process, “reporters” have to lock in a specified minimum amount of TRB tokens and wait one week before they can withdraw them. The staked amount is forfeited if a “reporter” submits data that is successfully disputed.

 

These measures put in place by Tellor ensure that the data used by smart contracts is reliable and tamper-resistant.

 

Traders may find value in TRB should they believe that Tellor’s ability to reliably provide secure and trustless real-world data to blockchain-based smart contracts and DApps allow it to position itself as the go-to decentralised oracle network in the blockchain industry. 

 

How To Start Trading Tellor (TRB) 

To trade TRB on Flipster:

 

1. Download the Flipster app and set-up your account
2. Go to [Trade]
3. Click on [Search] at the top of the page and type in TRB
4. Click on TRB
5. In the [Amount] field, type in the amount of TRB you wish to buy or sell. Alternatively, you can select the percentages below to choose how to use from your available funds.
6. Click [Preview order] to check your order
7. Once you have confirmed the details, click on [Buy TRB – Long] button or [Sell TRB – Short] respectively.

 

Disclaimer: This material is for information purposes only and does not constitute financial advice. Flipster makes no recommendations or guarantees in respect of any digital asset, product, or service. 

 

Trading digital assets and digital asset derivatives comes with significant risk of loss due to its high price volatility, and is not suitable for all investors.